Approach

To support parents and their children, we build upon their strengths and respond to their unique needs by maintaining a sustained focus on early learning through big-bet catalytic investments, seeking structural reforms to create more equitable policies and systems, and amplifying impact through coalitions and partnerships.

Equity Principles

We are committed to helping build quality, equitable early childhood systems. 

• We believe systems should value parents and early childhood educators as key informants, decision-makers, and leaders in systems change.

• We believe systems should be family focused, making it easier for parents to find, enroll in, and afford quality programs that reflect their needs, languages, and cultures.

• We believe systems should prioritize the workforce by providing professional compensation and benefits, by paying providers the full cost of providing quality care, and by centering equity in professional development and quality rating systems. 

• We believe systems should be data driven and reflect a commitment to continuous quality improvement for all young children and their families.

• We believe systems should maximize diverse revenue sources, ensuring significant public funding is the cornerstone, while also recognizing the role of private funding and employers in achieving a fully-funded system and making child care more affordable. 

We believe racial equity is essential to achieving our mission.

• We acknowledge that systemic racism in the United States has created barriers for families of color in supporting their children toward succeeding in school and life. All families, regardless of their circumstances, have strengths and want their children to thrive.

• We will continue to learn how institutional racism and inequitable systems act as barriers that make it harder for families to support their children’s healthy development.

• We will be intentional in promoting equitable practices, policies, and systems through our grantmaking and whom we choose as partners.

• We will ensure the voices and experiences of diverse families and caregivers will inform our investments.

• We believe our commitment to equity should be more than words. It will be increasingly evident in how we act and what we fund.